Hiring better cybersecurity professionals

What: A Fall 2012 report from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on the CyberSkills Task Force that outlines 11 recommendations to improve the hiring and training of cybersecurity professionals.

Why: The DHS formed a task force in order to address the rising threat of cyberattacks pertaining to the military, defense and federal civilian agencies.  The report touches on the challenge of hiring professionals with cybersecurity skills as well as ways for the U.S. to develop stronger defense against increasingly sophisticated cyber threats.

The Task Force on CyberSkills gives 11 recommendations divided into five objectives, such as how to recruit and retain these qualified cybersecurity professionals in such a way that working for DHS is more desirable than at other contractors or agencies. According to the authors, the report’s recommendations will help fulfill the DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano’s wish that federal agencies and the private sector "will have the technical cybersecurity workforce needed to meet their mission responsibilities."

Verbatim: "Recommendation 5: Make the hiring process smooth and supportive and make mission-critical cybersecurity jobs for the federal civilian workforce enticing in every dimension: in mission and service, skills, growth potential, and 'total value proposition' (Page 14)."

Full report: Click here.